Fueled by outstanding individual and team performances, dramatic come-from-behind wins and the most one-run games in a single postseason, each round of the 2009 MLB Postseason generated double-digit percentage year-to-year increases in average viewership as compared to 2008, capped by the 2009 World Series averaging 19.4 million viewers, a +42% increase over last year and the largest-ever year-to-year gain in viewership (previous high was 36% from 2000-2001, which followed a low viewership showing for the Subway Series). Complete 2009 MLB Postseason coverage on FOX and TBS averaged 9.0 million viewers, up +30% over last year and the most-watched since 2005. In addition to the +42% viewership gain for the World Series on FOX, viewership for the Division Series on TBS was up +11% over last year and viewership for the League Championship Series on FOX and TBS increased +14% over 2008. The 2009 MLB Postseason delivered extraordinary results for FOX and TBS, including leading TBS to the most-watched week in its 33-year history, and catapulting FOX to a commanding +22% lead in the key Adult 18-49 demographic against its network competition. The huge Adult 18-49 season-to-date advantage for FOX is the largest in the network’s history in the fourth quarter and the largest fourth-quarter lead for any network since 2003. With MLB and FOX moving most games to begin before 8:00 p.m. ET this year, the World Series led FOX to be the highest-rated network in primetime on each of the six nights that games aired. Overall the MLB Postseason led FOX to primetime victories on nine of the eleven nights when it broadcast Postseason baseball, and MLB Postseason games on FOX delivered the five highest-rated nights in primetime on any network this season (9/21/09 to present). The increase in World Series viewership should be tempered with the fact that the 2008 World Series was the least viewed World Series in history since Nielsen began tracking figures in 1968. The 2009 World Series will go down in history as the fouth highest viewed World Series of the last decade following 2003, 1999, 2001, and 2004. Below is a breakdown of World Series viewership over the last decade MLB WORLD SERIES VIEWERSHIP ON FOX SINCE 1999 (Winning team in BOLD) YEAR AL TEAM NL TEAM AVG. # OF VIEWERS % (+/-) 2009 New York Yankees Philadelphia Philles 19,400,000 42 2008 Tampa Bay Rays Philadelphia Phillies 13,635,000 -20 2007 Boston Red Sox Colorado Rockies 17,123,000 8 2006 Detroit Tigers St. Louis Cardinals 15,812,000 -8 2005 Chicago White Sox Houston Astros 17,162,000 -32 2004 Boston Red Sox St. Louis Cardinals 25,390,000 26 2003 NY Yankees Florida Marlins 20,143,000 5 2002 LA Angels SF Giants 19,261,000 -21 2001 NY Yankees Arizona Dbacks 24,528,000 36 2000 NY Yankees NY Mets 18,081,000 -24 1999 NY Yankees Atlanta Braves 23,731,000 Source: The Nielsen Company 2009 OTHER NEWS FROM THE BUSINESS OF SPORTS NETWORK (THE BIZ OF FOOTBALL) Does the NFL Salary Cap Still Work? Browns Fire GM George Kokinis After 1-7 Start UFL Failing to Dazzle at the Turnstiles DeMaurice Smith and Roger Goodell to Testify Regarding "StarCaps" Case Buccaneers Fire Back After Report That Team May Be Up For Sale (THE BIZ OF HOCKEY) Panel Installs Mike Ouellet As Acting Executive Director of NHLPA Ian Penny Steps Down as Interim Exec. Director of NHLPA NBCU & VERSUS: An Alternative to ESPN? (THE BIZ OF BASKETBALL) Rajon Rondo Reached 5-Year, $55M Extension with Celtics NBA.TV Adds Brent Barry to On-Air Talent Roster (SPORTS BASH) 5,855 You Twit: NBA Players Make MLB Look Anti-Social The Joy of Six When Is Shane Victorino Going to Show You the Finger? George W. Has to Go to Japan To Play Baseball NFL, MLB Tell States to Get Off Their Lawn When it Comes to Drug Policies Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He is available for hire or freelance. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network. Don't forget to register and log in on The Biz of Baseball site to get updates via your in-box, and see information only logged in members can see. Follow Maury Brown on Twitter Follow The Biz of Baseball on Twitter Follow the Business of Sports Network on Facebook